127
votes
Why did Peter Jackson add the Nazgûls attack scene in Bree when it was not present in the original story, nor very important for the plot?
He didn't deviate from the book...much
At least one Ring-Wraith does enter Bree in the night and is seen by Merry:
"I have seen them Frodo! I have seen them! Black riders!...Here. In
the village....
- 40.1k
120
votes
Accepted
What's the big deal about the Nazgûl losing their horses?
The Ringwraiths couldn't fly on their own or teleport. To get from point A (near Rivendell) to point B (Mordor) they had to travel every foot in between. In LotR, they walk, ride horseback and ride ...
- 42k
89
votes
Accepted
Why did Peter Jackson add the Nazgûls attack scene in Bree when it was not present in the original story, nor very important for the plot?
Jackson and Boyens felt that the medium of film (as opposed to Tolkien's fairly stodgy prose) allowed them a unique opportunity to create a scene that would heighten tension for a few minutes as well ...
- 702k
74
votes
Who stabbed Frodo?
It was the Witch-King who stabs Frodo.
There were five tall figures: two standing on the lip of the dell,
three advancing. In their white faces burned keen and merciless eyes; under their mantles ...
- 66.3k
67
votes
Accepted
Are all Ringwraiths called Nazgûl in LotR?
Nazgûl is Black Speech and is translated as Ringwraiths or sometimes Ring-wraiths. Nazg means ring and gûl means wraith/spirit in the broadest of terms.
gûl is a loan from the "Black Speech"...
- 144k
64
votes
Accepted
Were the Nazgûl undead?
The Witch-king is described as undead...
In Return of the King, when Merry slashes at him (emphasis mine):
So passed the sword of the Barrow-downs, work of Westernesse. But glad would he have been to ...
- 164k
57
votes
Why didn't the Witch-king of Angmar conquer The Shire?
First things first, the Shire (as "the Shire") likely didn't exist until four years after the Witch-king fled eastwards, when Bucca of the Marish became the first Thain.
1975 Arvedui ...
- 77.5k
46
votes
Accepted
What happened to the Nazgûl after they were swept away by the river?
Short answer: They walked home, unclad.
The last thing Frodo sees at the ford is
At that moment there came a roaring and a rushing: a noise of loud waters rolling many stones. Dimly Frodo saw the ...
- 42k
42
votes
Accepted
How did Gandalf know the Nazgûl crossed the river in secret?
Saruman told Radagast.
’ ”I have an urgent errand,” he said. “My news is evil.” Then he looked about him, as if the hedges might have ears. “Nazgûl,” he whispered. “The Nine are abroad again. They ...
- 25k
40
votes
Accepted
Why didn't the Witch-king of Angmar conquer The Shire?
He didn't know or care about it.
The Shire was a small entity within the realm of Arnor (or Arthedain), not politically or militarily powerful. We know that it and its inhabitants were very little ...
- 135k
38
votes
Accepted
What is the creature that the Nazgûl ride called?
Tolkien did not name the creature but based on different chapters of the books they were called by different names.
The Fell beasts, hell-hawks, and Nazgûl-birds, were names used to describe the ...
- 17.2k
30
votes
Accepted
In 'The Lord of the Rings', are the Ringwraiths really alive?
The Nazgûl are quite the enigma in Tolkien's Legendarium. They are spoken about in a multitude of ways and things are kept rather ambiguous. A few things are however clear. The Nazgûl have not died, ...
- 77.5k
28
votes
Who stabbed Frodo?
If you're ok with taking the movies' word for it, Gandalf clearly states that it was the Witch-king
Gandalf: Sauron has yet to reveal his deadliest servant. The one who would lead Mordor's armies ...
- 20.3k
27
votes
Who stabbed Frodo?
It was the Witch-King (Probably)
Two of the figures halted. The third was taller than the others: his
hair was long and gleaming and on his helm was a crown. In one hand
he held a long sword, and in ...
- 702k
23
votes
Who made the Nazgûl's swords?
I'm willing to be corrected on this, but I think the answer is "we don't know". The swords could have been made in Mordor, Minas Morgul, Dol Guldur... They might even be artifacts from the ...
- 10.9k
22
votes
What is the creature that the Nazgûl ride called?
The carcass of one of these animals (the one ridden by the Witch-king of Angmar) is twice referred to as a "fell beast" in The Return of the King.
Right before Théoden's death:
But ...
- 1,691
21
votes
Accepted
Why did the Nazgûl not attack a second time at Weathertop?
There are a few varying reasons why the Nazgûl didn't attack again, all of which I'll cover in this answer.
First off is Gandalf's opinion that he gives to Frodo in Rivendell, following that we have ...
- 77.5k
20
votes
What's the big deal about the Nazgûl losing their horses?
So why do the people assembled at Rivendell seem to think that just because the Nine have lost their mounts, the threat is somehow temporarily over? They know the flood couldn't have killed or hurt ...
- 1,465
17
votes
What happened to the Nazgûl after they were swept away by the river?
The Nine returned to their master and drew strength again, before being sent out on their new winged reptilian mounts. They stay hidden on the eastern side of the Anduin for several months, until ...
- 98.6k
16
votes
Accepted
How did the Nazgûl survive?
It is clear that the Ainur have the power to delay the Gift of Men. There are numerous examples. After Beren's death, his soul resides long enough in Mandos for Lúthien to make a plea on his behalf, ...
- 98.6k
15
votes
Could any of the other eight Wraiths be destroyed by man?
Not by the hand of man can he fall is not the prophecy. It doesn't say anything about can or can't, just will. That's how events will work out. It will be a combination of Merry's enchanted Barrow-...
- 3,873
13
votes
How did Gandalf know the Nazgûl crossed the river in secret?
What do we know from LotR that might bear on the question of the source of the information?
Thanks to @Harry Johnson in the comments, it seems likely that Saruman discovered that the Riders were ...
- 42k
13
votes
Why did Peter Jackson add the Nazgûls attack scene in Bree when it was not present in the original story, nor very important for the plot?
Just to build tension. The whole of the first half of the first movie was a desperate race to Rivendell, being chased the whole time by the Nazgûl. It's more or less the same in the book, the main ...
- 728
12
votes
Who stabbed Frodo?
It was the lord of the Nazgûl (previously known as the Witch King of Angmar), or at least it seems to have been the most powerful black rider present.
Two of the figures halted. The third was ...
- 98.6k
12
votes
Accepted
If Sauron had triumphed, would the Witch King have been reincarnated?
Does Sauron have any use of the Witch King after regaining the One Ring? Yes.
Sauron wants to dominate and control the Free Peoples of Middle Earth. He did that by having the Rings of Power forged, ...
- 34.2k
12
votes
Why did the Nazgûl not attack a second time at Weathertop?
"There seem only to have been five of the enemy"
You're not the first to wonder. Strider also ponders over why the Ringwraiths had retreated immediately. The Ringwraiths were strongest ...
- 26.4k
9
votes
Accepted
Would a Nazgûl in possession of the One Ring seek to use it?
No, the Nazgûl would never seek to use the Ring. In Unfinished Tales, specifically in the chapter The Hunt for the Ring, Tolkien discusses the Nazgûl and the reasons they were sent to recover the ring....
- 701
9
votes
What did the rings of the Nazgûl do?
The Silmarillion says that the men who were granted the rings obtained "power" and became "sorcerers" (thus, the "Witch-King") but we don't get too much in the way of ...
- 39.8k
8
votes
How did the Witch King of Angmar get his sword back?
Gandalf took it into Dol Guldur with him and it was taken from him.
Peter Jackson: So Philippa, in the commentary on the first of the Hobbit movies, we said that we were going to talk about how the ...
- 95.3k
8
votes
Accepted
If somebody stole the nine rings from Sauron, could that person control the Ringwraiths?
We don't know.
What we do know is that Sauron is able to control the Nazgûl via the Nine Rings, but unfortunately we do not know if other people of less (or more) power is able to do the same.
Yes, we ...
- 26.4k
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